Thermic lance made from spaghetti

[Frogz] sent in a video he found of a thermic lance constructed from spaghetti. If you are not familiar, thermic lances are typically comprised of an iron tube filled with iron rods, which are then burned using highly pressurized oxygen. This lance however, was built by tightly wrapping a bundle of spaghetti in aluminum foil and attaching it to an oxygen tank. While thermic lances are commonly used in heavy construction where thick steel needs to be cut, [latexiron] and his friends use theirs to cut apart a chair. While we don’t necessarily condone drunken destruction of innocent patio furniture, we can’t help but watch this video again and again in amazement of the incredibly novel use of everyday pasta. You too can join in the drunken revelry after the jump. If food-based cutting torches are your thing, be sure to check out this bacon lance as well.

I just started taking a welding class and we are doing safety and torch cutting. While very interesting (oxygen and spaghetti who knew) I have one serious reservation about this video. WHY is he laying that bottle on its side? Good safety says you should always keep ANY compressed bottle upright.

Fascinating. Send this to MythBusters. First, because I want confirmation before I get out the angel hair. Second, I imagine Jamie and Adam playing with a thermic lance and there is nothing but good and destruction.

@Bob
Compressed oxygen will make anything burn much faster, but not anything that burns will do; you still need sufficient energy content. Food, as it so happens, contains a lot of energy. Carbohydrates (pasta) for instance is more energy dense than TNT.

@Hockersmith O2-bottles are also mounted lying down when fitted in aircraft for high altitude flying (specifically: gliders). At least in that application, with those flow rates and regulators, it’s a complete non-issue.